Thicker Than Water
by JMD-009
Summary: Hank Landry has only just began to repair his relationship with his daughter. An unexpected letter tells him that may not be the hardest relationship he has to work on.
1. The Letter

Disclaimer: I'm poor. I own nothing

--o--o--o--

Post 'Chosen' for Buffy.  
Post 'Four Horsemen' for Stargate.

--o--o--o--

Notes: I was halfway through the next part of 'Concrete Jungle' when this plot bunny hit me and wouldn't go away. So here is the first part of my new Stargate crossover and the next part of 'Concrete Jungle' should be out by the end of the week.

--o--o--o--

_Dearest Hank,_

_Bet you never thought you would hear from me again did you? Do you even remember me? I know we were only together for a short time, but I hope you do. I wouldn't blame you if you didn't it would just make this easier. Then again, probably not._

_I'm not sure why I finally decided to contact you after all these years. It's something I've been meaning to do for a long time but always found a reason not to. I couldn't tell you why now except to say that it feels like if I don't do it now I'll never get another chance. There's something strange going on around here. A feeling of, well, something. People are leaving the town by the dozens though. Tony says -- well it's not important what Tony says._

_This isn't what I wanted to tell you about. Can you tell I'm nervous?_

_The truth is I wronged you and for that I'm sorry. I'd like to say I always planned to tell you but I know that's not the case. There were moments where I nearly did but I always chickened out. It was just easier to pretend. To pretend that we were the happy family even though we are anything but._

_I don't know any gentle way to do this so I'll just come out and say it._

_I have a son. We have a son._

_Have I got your attention?_

_Those months we were together were some of the most amazing times of my life but when I found out I was pregnant I was scared. Not because I thought you would take the news poorly but because it would make you stay; and that I would let you._

_Confused? I know I'm not getting this out the most clear. I don't know how to get what's in my head down on the paper in something that makes sense. I'll try to explain._

_You already had a daughter you never saw, even when you were still with your ex-wife. You were always away on one assignment or another, never able to talk about what you had done._

_I don't blame you. Your dedication is one of the reasons I fell in love with you. If it had just been me I would have stayed forever but I didn't want my child to grow up with a part time father. So I left you without a word and tried to find someone else for the role of husband and father. _

_Anthony, as it would turn out, was a poor choice and he dragged me down with him. I'm ashamed to say I let him do it. Ashamed that I wasn't the mother I should have been. It's been a year since I've spoken to my own son. Not since his failed attempt at a wedding._

_I blame myself for the fear I saw in his eyes at the rehearsal dinner. With his stepfather and I as examples of marriage how could he not be a little afraid? Despite that I know he loves Anya and I'm not sure what could have caused him to run. If there's one thing I know about my son it's that he doesn't run. Even when he probably should._

_He picked up the pieces since then though. I may not have spoken with him, but I've seen him around town on occasion and he seems happy. His friends helped him in that more than I ever could have._

_Work's been good for him too. He's a construction worker and a good one at that. I heard he made foreman this year. A friend told me they saw him on a date not long ago and I'm glad. I can only hope he finds someone who makes him as happy as you made me._

_His name is Alexander Lavelle Harris and he is a good man. A man you would be proud of. Tony and I had very little to do with it. On my more reflective days I thank a God I don't often believe in for him becoming better than the environment I provided._

_I'm sorry more than I could ever say that you are only finding out about our son after he is already grown. You deserve to know the truth Hank, you always did but I was a too much of a coward to tell you. Enclosed is his number and address, I know it doesn't make up for what I've done but I hope it's a start._

_With love and regret,_

_Jessica Lavelle-Harris_

--o--o--o--

Major General Hank Landry read the letter for what had to be at least the twelfth time.

The rest of the mail he had been sorting long since forgotten after he came across the letter. It was dated just over two weeks ago and postmarked Sunnydale, California.

Hank placed the lettered down with a tired sigh and held his face in his hands. He remembered Sunnydale. The letter was sent only days before it was levelled by a freak sinkhole.

He didn't know what to think right now, what to do. Hank Landry was a man used to being in control. As much as he could be anyways. He held command of perhaps the most secret and most important installation on the planet. He made decisions that could affect the entire world, among others, on virtually a daily basis.

Now his thoughts were a chaotic mess.

_I have a son?_

_Did he make it out? Is he still alive?_

_What's he like?_

_What does he think about me?_

_Does he even know about me?_

Hank leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. After a few deep breaths he opened his eyes up, his gaze falling on his phone. Before he knew what he was doing the receiver was in his hand and he had pressed number one on his speed dial. He nearly hung up when a tired voice answered on the other end. Instead he swallowed audibly and pressed on.

"Carolyn, it's Dad."

"I know it's late."

"No, there's no emergency at the mountain."

"I know it's late but is it alright if I come over? We really need to talk. Please?"


	2. Father and Daughter

Disclaimer: I'm poor. I own nothing

--o--o--o--

Doctor Carolyn Lam didn't think anything could surprise her anymore.

When her parents had gotten divorced it was a shock. Even as a chid she could notice the tension between them, though she couldn't yet understand it, and she regularly played with a girl who's parents had split but she never imagined it could happen to her own. Her naïve young mind thought nothing else could ever surprise her again.

She couldn't hold onto that childish notion after she began work at the CDC. The awe and destructive power of things so small would forever be etched upon her brain. And she thought "what could possibly be more of a shock than the reality of the job the first time you fail to save a life?"

She got her answer when she was briefed on the Stargate Program and made its new chief medical officer. After that she believed this was it, nothing could possibly be a greater surprise than aliens and spaceships and other worlds; nothing could shake _her_ world as much as this.

Carolyn was just proven wrong.

"Brother?" she said, her voice oddly even.

Hank simply nodded at her, not trusting his voice at the moment. He hadn't really said much of anything since arriving at her apartment. Not that it was a surprise really, as a general he almost always had something to say but as a father he often fond himself at a loss . She told herself it didn't bother her anymore.

He did try to say something when he first arrived. After a few minutes fumbling for the right words he dropped onto the couch and pulled out a letter. Carolyn had never seen him so anxious as when he handed it over.

"Brother?" she said again, an edge creeping into her voice.

Again Hank nodded.

"Brother?!" Carolyn finally exclaimed and from the look in her father's eyes she could tell he had been expecting it. She didn't care.

"How do you even know any of this is true?" she asked the question that had been churning in her mind. "It could be some sort of scam you know. Some woman you had a fling with twenty years ago suddenly contacts you out of the blue and tells you that you have a son and you just take her word for it?"

"I'm not," he told her once he held her gaze. "But if she wanted something it's unlikely Jessica would have waited two decades to contact me. She would have shown up in person or at least called. It's a lot harder to scam someone with a letter.

"Right now I'm inclined to at least consider the possibility," Hank finished, choosing his last words carefully.

"I'll believe it when I see the DNA results!" Carolyn spat angrily. Then the anger was gone and Carolyn deflated. She sank heavily into an armchair, closed her eyes and ran both hands over her face and through her hair. "God this is so screwed up."

After a long moment she raised her head up to look at her father. "Have you even really thought about this Dad?"

"It's all I've thought about since I got the letter. I came straight over as soon as I had enough sense back to drive."

Carolyn had to admit, even if only to herself, that softened the blow somewhat. Her relationship with her father had been strained since he and her mother divorced. So much so that she nearly didn't take the job at the mountain when it was offered. It was him who made the effort to try and spend time with her and fix things. Efforts she continually rebuffed.

It wasn't until the Ori plague spread across the Earth that she began to understand how hard it must have been on him all those years when she had to lie to her own mother. The truth was classified and she just didn't have the clearance. It wasn't until she nearly lost her father to the plague that she began to make an effort too.

It was still a work in progress.

"Who is she Dad?" she asked uncertain if she really wanted an answer. Even after all these years it was still difficult to imagine him with someone who wasn't her mother.

Then Carolyn finally took in her father's appearance. All her life she was used to seeing him strong and in control. Even during the divorce she never saw him falter. Now he looked so tired. She would never admit how much that unnerved her.

"It… it was almost two years after you mother and I…" Hank started hesitantly and Carolyn felt a little better at that. At least he was uncomfortable with this too. "I was stationed in San Francisco. Shortly after I arrived I met Jessica."

He got a small, almost wistful, smile on his face and gave a soft chuckle. "She forced me to have fun again. It's not something I'd had much of. At that point I'd been living in a funk and mostly going through the motions since…" Hank dropped his gaze away from her. "Well you know."

And she did. As much as Carolyn wanted him to continue she let her father collect himself. The divorce was still a sore point for both of them. If she was honest with herself she needed the time to stuff down the resentment him mentioning it always brought up. Just because she was trying to mend things did not mean it always came easy.

After a long moment he looked back up at her.

"We moved in together," he told her. "We were together for six months and we were happy." A pensive expression came over his face. "At least I thought we both were. Sure I was on assignment a lot but she never said anything about it."

Hank shook his head at himself. "I should have learnt my lesson after your mother."

"What happened?" she asked though Carolyn already had a good idea of the answer.

"I came home one day and she was gone. No note, no explanation; just gone. I never knew what happened." He paused and gestured to the letter still in her lap. "Until tonight anyway."

Carolyn bit her lip and asked the question she wasn't sure she actually wanted an answer too. "Did you love her?"

She could tell he was giving it real thought, apparently wanting to give her a genuine answer and not sugarcoat the truth for her. It wouldn't do to lie at this point anyway.

"I cared for her more than I had thought I could care for someone again," he said finally, looking her straight in the eyes with an intense look in his own. Then the moment was broken and he sighed heavily. "But no, I wasn't in love with her. Could I have? Maybe, one day. I don't know. I never will."

His head flopped against the back of the coach and he gave a bitter chuckle. "Two women I cared for leaving me in only a few years? I just couldn't go through that again. So I just didn't date much after that. Still don't really."

Looking at him now Carolyn knew she had never seen her father so open with her. It warmed her and unnerved her at the same time. She just wished she knew what to say.

Minutes ticked by but neither spoke. Both were lost in their own thoughts. It couldn't last forever though and it was Carolyn who eventually broke the silence. Awkwardly she asked. "Are you going to call him? Alexander I mean."

Hank leaned forward and clasped his hands in his lap. "Carolyn, the postmark was Sunnydale."

She stared at him confused for a moment. Why did that name sound familiar? "I know that name from somewhere."

Her father nodded. His eyes took on a haunted look Carolyn had never seen in them before. Involuntarily she felt her heart plummet.

"The sinkhole Carolyn," he told her. "It's been all over the news the last couple weeks. Sunnydale was swallowed by a freak sinkhole. The entire town. All of it. I don't even know if Alexander is still alive."

Carolyn gasped. It surprised her how disturbed she was at the thought of having lost a brother she wasn't convinced she actually had.

"What are you going to do?"

She saw the resolve and strength she was used to seeing start to return as his lips drew into a tight line. "Look for him, Carolyn. No matter what I end up finding I'm going to look for him."

--o--o--o--

With a grunt born of frustration Hank slammed down the phone. As soon as he arrived at the mountain he barricaded himself in his office with explicit instructions not to be disturbed unless it was an emergency. All day he had the phone practically glued to his ear. He called everyone in the area he could think of. Relief centres set up for Sunnydale refugees, those working in the rescue efforts; he even called around to the various hotels and motels.

He was no closer to any answers then he had been the day before.

Turning to his computer Hank brought up a travel site and booked a flight to LA. If he couldn't get answers on the phone he would go down and look himself. Colonel Carter could handle things at the SGC for a week or two.

"Unscheduled off-world activation." Hank looked up at the sound of Walter's voice over the speaker. With a sigh he pushed his chair out and hoped this wasn't something that would cause him to miss his flight.

--o--o--o--

Carolyn walked into her office, an air of professionalism surrounding her. She dropped a pile of folders on her desk as she sat down and opened the top one. After a moment she opened a second and began comparing the two.

This was a new one. Not even when she got her clearance to know what went on in the mountain did she ever think she would end up doing work-ups of more than one of the same person. That was exactly what she was doing when a second SG-1 team came through the gate earlier.

To her credit Carolyn tried vigilantly to concentrate on her work; she really did. Almost of their own accord her eyes kept drifting over to her computer and the file she had acquired first thing that morning but had yet to bring herself to open.

With a frustrated click of her tongue Carolyn gave in and closed the folders. She grabbed her mouse and brought up the file, intending for a quick peek to sate her curiosity and get back to work.

It didn't happen that way.

By the time she made it through the preteen years of Alexander's medical records her jaw was clenched tightly and face an angry red.

--o--o--o--

There were some drawbacks to running one of the most classified projects in the world.

Unfortunately a potential threat to the entire multi-verse, and boy did that boggle his mind, had to take precedence over personal matters. Jack said there would be days like this. Bastard.

By the time they were able to fix the tear, or ripple or whatever Carter had said it was, and finally send all the alternate SG-1 teams home there were well over a dozen of them and rapidly approaching two.

Landry was just glad it was over.

It had been a trying few days and with everything going on he hadn't had time to sleep let alone spend more than a few minutes at a time in his office.

His muscles relaxed gratefully as he sank into his chair, a small groan escaping his lips. Hank closed his eyes and let his whole body and mind unwind, but only for a moment. As comfortable as his chair was he would regret it in the morning if he fell asleep at his desk.

When he opened his eyes his gaze fell on his phone. A light was blinking on it. Hank picked up the receiver and punched in his voicemail code. Most he ignored, demands for updates on the alternate reality situation, but the last one caught his attention. He sat up straight, all traces of tiredness gone as he listened intently. He replayed it three more times before finally hanging up.

Hank closed his eyes again and pinched the bridge of his nose. A new tension was setting in but at the same time he was relieved.

On the plus side he now knew Alexander was alive. On the other hand, why the hell was he going to Africa?


	3. Returning from Afar

Disclaimer: I'm poor. I own nothing

--o--o--o--

Notes: This is out later than I planned but I ended up rewriting it three times before I had something I was happy with. The next update probably won't be until January.

--o--o--o--

People were giving him a wide berth as he walked through Hopkins International. Xander barely noticed. He was used to people giving him his space these days. It was something most people did without realising when they came across a tall, reasonably built, one-eyed man. The fact that he radiated an air of 'stay the hell away from me' probably helped too.

It most likely would have been different if he still wore his bright Hawaiian shirts, or even his trademark goofy grin. He just hadn't been in the mood for that much lately.

Nobody talked about Sunnydale anymore. It was like when they were kids and a classmate died or 'disappeared'. Like they never existed to begin with. Xander could never bring himself to feel that way though. Even if nobody wanted to talk about them Xander always remembered them. Every name and every face; he remembered. He remembered Jesse.

Most of their lives it had been Willow, Jesse and him: the three musketeers. They did everything together, shared everything. At least until Darla vamped Jesse.

He had only just found out about vampires, about the real world underneath what everyone thought was the real world, and something like this happened. A personal blow enough to break or motivate him. He chose motivate, but it hadn't been easy.

After Jesse was dust the trend continued and everybody followed the unwritten rule; nobody would talk about him. Sure Willow came to him for comfort, but only at first. In no time at all even she never mentioned his name, even when talking about their childhood.

That was part of the problem. _She_ came to _him_ for comfort. But damn it he needed to talk about it! It was his stake that pierced Jesse's heart. Yes he was pushed onto the stake, but it was still his stake being held in his shaking hands. Logically he knew that Jesse was already gone but in his heart he still felt like he killed his best friend.

He needed help through that, to decide whether to fight or walk away and pretend everything was all right, but nobody was there. It was his father of all people that gave him the strength to go on.

It was only a couple days after Jesse's death that his father caught him in his bedroom with silent tears rolling down his face. Well Tony Harris was not one to put up with what he considered sissy behaviour in his house. It only served to anger Xander but what could he say? He killed his friend but the body turned to dust?

The more his father had gone at it the angrier Xander had gotten. It was the first time he hit back. That's not to say his father hit him all the time, just that he had more that a few 'accidents' growing up. From that day on Xander made a conscious decision not to be a victim anymore. To anyone or anything.

He thanked Jesse for that every time he closed his eyes.

--o--o--o--

Outwardly Hank Landry appeared the stalwart military man as he entered his office. Internally he was weary.

It hadn't exactly been a good day. Hell, not even a good month.

Two of Earth's Daedalus class ships, ten Ha'taks from the Free Jaffa and three from the Lucian Alliance, one O'Neall class ship from the Asgard; one would think nothing could stand against such a fleet. Yet at the battle for the supergate a mere four Ori motherships did just that. It only took four ships to decimate them.

The Ori had a foothold in this Galaxy, their fleet growing by the hour. Chulak was one of the first worlds to fall in their conquest.

At least SG-1 and Vala Mal Doran were safely back at the SGC. A small victory to be sure but at this point Hank would take what he could get.

As he sat behind his desk his mind wondered to where it usually did when he was alone. Alexander. Another reason for his weariness.

His first instinct when he found out Alexander was alive was to jump on the next plane to Africa and track him down. He couldn't do that. Not with the mounting Ori situation.

That's not to say he did nothing. Hank had been a military man all his life and been all over the world carrying out his duties. He knew people, some of whom owed him favours.

He started calling them in.

That was six months ago. You would think a twenty-three year old Californian with an eye patch would be easier to track down in Africa.

All he really knew for sure was that Alexander was alive, he moved around a lot, and he did a great deal of charity work in the villages and towns he passed through.

Hank pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed before clearing his screen saver. A minute later his eyes widened at what he read.

Maybe that wasn't all he knew after all. Alexander wasn't in Africa anymore. He was in Cleveland.

--o--o--o--

A small, rotund man jostled Xander as he was reaching for his bags in baggage claim. The man had a scowl etched on his face going on about delays and how he was an important man with important things to do and the like. Xander just shook his head and waited patiently for his bags to come back around the conveyor. The personal space thing didn't work all the time.

Eventually his bags came around again and he grabbed them. He turned and headed for the exit at a leisurely pace. There was no hurry since there would be nobody waiting for him. All he had said when he called was that he was coming to Cleveland, he hadn't said when. That was a week ago.

As he walked through the crowd he wondered who would be there to great him when he arrived. After Sunnydale they had pretty much scattered.

It bothered Xander how little it bothered everyone else when Sunndale collapsed. Everyone just seemed to take the destruction of a Hellmouth as a victory and move on. He couldn't do that.

Sunnydale was more than just a place to him. He had lived there his whole life and couldn't have stayed away even if he tried. It was where he met his best friends and the love of his life. It was where he found something worth living for, something worth fighting for. It was more than just a place, it was a part of him.

He was surprised Willow wasn't more upset. She had been there with him through it all. It was her home too. He supposed she at least had Kennedy to help her through it. As much as he disapproved of the relationship, thought it was unhealthy the way she jumped into the arms of another woman when he knew she wasn't even close to being over Tara yet, at least she had somebody. He didn't.

It was Andrew, of all people, who showed more concern for him over Anya's death than anyone else. He got the cursory condolences from the others but nobody really tried to help him deal. More concern was shown to how Buffy was dealing with Spike's death.

Xander had to bite down the bitter taste that brought up. They showed more remorse over the death of someone who had been unreliable both when he didn't and when he did have a soul than over someone who had been with them through so much over the years.

The double standard didn't really surprise him though; it just bothered him. When they found out Anya had gotten her demonic powers back Buffy had been gung-ho about stopping Anya, yet when The First proved it could control an already unstable and dangerous Spike she was more than willing to keep him around.

He knew the reason for it, even if he didn't like it. He was 'the one who sees'. The one who offers the comfort, gives the pep talks that give them the strength to go on. It never occurred to anyone that he may be the one who needed the pep talk.

All too soon plans had to be made, and there just wasn't time for mourning anymore.

Giles, Robin and Faith took most of the newly awakened Slayers to the Cleveland Hellmouth. Andrew tagged along because… well, it's not like he had anywhere else to go. They had managed a lot in the last six months, or so he gathered from his weekly check in calls with Giles. Apparently they got a decent building to work and live out of, not to mention train the new girls to protect the Hellmouth. Giles was even close to finding the rest of the Old Council's monetary assets last they talked. It had been slow going but he had been optimistic.

The rest of them had their work cut out for them too though. Potentials all over the world had just become Slayers, and somebody had to find them before the other side did.

It was fortunate that, unlike what he had first thought, not all the Watchers were killed by The First, mostly just the upper echelon and those with potentials in their care. Many of those still alive were more than willing to help out and rebuild, though some took things as a sign it was time to retire. Europe and Asia in particular were well covered.

One part of the world that had virtually no Watcher presence at all was Africa. Xander was quick to volunteer. Lots of places to get lost, and that's just what he needed. He had lost a home, an eye, a love and his closest friendships needed serious time put into repairing the damage done to them over the last few years. If they could be repaired at all.

The thing was he needed to heal himself before healing anything else. He knew if he stayed around the others he'd break sooner rather than later.

Naturally the objections came almost before the words were out of his mouth.

There was a time, not so long ago, he would have backed down. Instead he slipped out, bought a ticket and went anyways.

It was a month before he called anyone. Xander didn't even know that Giles knew language like that.

In the end, when the ranting ended, he apologized for worrying everyone and for the way he left. From the silence he suspected the older man noted that he didn't apologize for actually leaving but he said nothing of it. Xander was thankful for that.

He openly admitted to Giles that he should have contacted him as soon as he arrived, if only for a plan of action. He didn't really have anything specific in mind when his plane first landed on the African continent. Instead Xander pretty much wandered aimlessly, never staying in the same town, yet alone a single country, for very long.

Occasionally he would hear rumours that could be about Slayers or demons and would follow them as far as he could, often to remote locations. Whenever finding a Slayer he would give her the low down on things, sometimes through a translator if one was available. Usually there wasn't one and he had to muddle his way through. Africa has over two thousand languages, and it's not like he could learn them all. Or even one really. Xander was able to pick up a little Arabic and Swahili, along with bits and pieces of a handful of regional dialects he didn't know the name of. That helped some.

Once he got communication going he offered the girls the Cleveland school as a training ground. Most turned the offer down, which didn't surprise him, and he didn't press the issue. He wasn't going to force these girls into anything. That was no way to gain their trust. Still, he always left them more prepared than when he arrived and called in their location so a Watcher could be sent to check in later.

As good as he knew the work he was doing was it still did nothing to help him heal. If anything, seeing the poverty and war, the hungry and the sick, broke his heart more than ever.

It wasn't until his fourth week in Africa, the day before he called Giles, that things changed for him. Xander came across a charity group building shelter and a small medical centre in a village that had been hit hard by a local warlord. From that day on he spent as much time swinging a hammer and passing out food as he did searching for Slayers.

A biting cold brought Xander out of his thoughts as he passed through the automatic doors, his light jacket doing little against a Cleveland winter. Having spent his entire life in Sunnydale he had never felt such cold before. He ignored it as best he could as he went to get a cab.

"Xander!" someone called behind him, and Xander tensed at the sound of feet rapidly hitting pavement that accompanied it. He turned on instinct to defend himself from his attacker. It was only as he placed the voice that he hid the motion by opening his arms to welcome the brunette missile.

"Hey, Dawnie," he said as he wrapped the girl in a warm hug. As Dawn pulled back Xander forced his patented jovial grin on his face. "Miss me?"

Dawn smiled up at him. "You have no idea. I'm glad we caught you. Traffic was worse than I thought and I didn't think we'd make in time."

"We?"

"She means me, Boytoy." Xander looked up to see Faith coming towards them, the seductive sway of her hips and tight leather pants earning her more than a few admiring looks, mostly on her backside.

"Not that I don't appreciate this, but what are you two doing here? I didn't tell anyone I was coming today."

"Short-stuff here," Faith said jerking her thumb towards Dawn. "Gave Red a call. Only so many flights from Cairo to Cleveland. Apparently it didn't take much to find out which you bought a ticket for."

Faith grinned. "You should have seen Little D when we hit that traffic jam. Cursing up a storm, giving everyone the finger, it was a riot." She tapped her chin in mock thoughtfulness. "I don't think the nuns in that bus appreciated it though."

Dawn's face went beet red. "I wasn't that bad."

"Keep telling yourself that," Faith told her before turning back on Xander. "Anyway Dawnie was having a breakdown and I told her to relax, we'd be there in plenty of time. Who'd have thought you'd get the only flight that's on time."

"You didn't have to go through all that trouble," Xander said as he followed them through the parking lot.

"I've barely even been able to talk to you lately," Dawn told him as she came to a stop next to a blue Pontiac Sunfire. "I'm not wasting a second of Xander-time"

Xander pulled the girl into a hug. "I missed you too."

"Shotgun!" Faith called suddenly, grinning at them over the car.

"Okay, but I get the shiny axe this time. I like the shiny."

Faith rolled her eyes before getting into the passenger seat. Xander and Dawn took their cue and got in the car as well.

"Time to get you home," Dawn said after she turned the key.

As the car pulled out Xander's forced grin began to waver. The offhand comment sent his mind back to Sunnydale. It was hell but it was still his home. He missed it.

--o--o--o--

Jailik was getting annoyed. The console before him reflected the scowl on his reptilian features back at him.

"Alright," a voice came over the intercom. "That's the next load. Come and help me sort out the catch."

It was only after a few steadying breaths that Jailik stood.

How long ago had it been since he had let his brother talk him into this? I need your help Jailik. It's the perfect plan Jailik. We'll be rich in no time Jailik.

He really should have known better. Daijin always had one 'get rich quick' scheme or another going on. If nothing had even remotely worked out so far, why had he thought this would be different?

Sure, salvage had seemed like a good idea in theory. There was always one battle or another going on, especially in recent years. First there was the fall of the System Lords and the battles that preceded that, then that crap with the Replicators and now the Ori, not to mention all the other skirmishes going on. Every time the galactic threat gets taken down and peace seems in reach someone else comes in and causes trouble.

In other words business should have been good. It wasn't.

They only had one small cargo ship and virtually nonexistent contacts. The larger operations always seemed to beat them to the punch and all they were left with were table scraps. They were losing money faster than they were making it, which, no matter the platitudes his brother gave him, bothered Jailik immensely. His family may like to eat some time this month after all.

That is what led them here, one last try before he washed his hands of it all. Daijin had come to him all excited. Apparently a contact (when he actually made one Jailik may never know) had given them the coordinates to where a massive ship supposedly disappeared off sensors during the Replicators' attack on the galaxy.

What they found when they got there was a whole lot of nothing.

Oh, sure, they detected lots of metal in the area but it didn't matter. So far they only found these small useless metallic blocks by the barrel.

Jailik's scowl deepened when he walked into the hold only to see Daijin enthusiastically piling more of those damned blocks into barrels. He took a moment to calm himself before he went over to help. The quicker they got this done the quicker he could go home. Maybe he could even make his youngest child's hatchday.

"Jailik! Come over here quick!" Daijin exclaimed in that annoyingly cheerful voice of his. "You have to see this!"

Mentally counting to ten Jailik went over to see what his brother was so excited about. What he saw was definitely not what he was expecting, but it still didn't impress him much.

"It's just a human female," he told his brother patiently as he looked into the small area Daijin had been clearing. It revealed the body of a blonde woman in strange grey clothing. "A dead human female at that. Admittedly remarkably preserved, but still just a dead body."

"Don't you see, Jailik? If there is a body then there must have been a ship. There must be something useful here som-AKK!" Daijin gargled out as blood poured out of his mouth and he stared disbelievingly at the blade in his chest. His eyes followed the blade down an arm it seemed to grow out of until he finally stared into the now open eyes of the 'dead' human female.

Jailik could only watch in horror as the blade was pulled out, morphing back into a hand, and his brother fell lifelessly to the ground. He hurriedly backed away as the woman stood and turned to him. He moved too fast apparently and he lost his footing on the blocks littering the floor of the cargo hold.

With a casual grace the woman approached him, morphing her arm again as she moved. The last thing Jailik saw was the terror on his own face reflected in the metal of her blade.


End file.
